As if the desert heat isn't enough

While it does get very hot out here in the desert during the summer....it's a DRY heat which makes it bearable for me. I'm not a fan of humidity. In fact, I hate it.

However, the last few weeks nature has decided to give us both to deal with. The heat & the humidity. According to the weather man, one day last week was up to 87% humidity in the morning. Today we're at 53%. Those numbers are WAY too high for us in Las Vegas. There are a few reasons I enjoy where I live and NO humidity is one of them. I find it gross to walk outside your door and within 5 minutes, you already feel like you need to shower again. Not to mention the frizzy hair.

I'm just hoping we get back to our normal dry heat soon. I can't hack the humidity.

Surprise Date for Weston

I don't think I fully realize how lucky I am to have Wes as a husband. He does so much around our house to help out.....he cooks daily, cleans, does laundry, goes grocery shopping, etc. He has been especially helpful the last few months with my crazy "nesting" projects & my desire to have the house pretty close to perfect before our child is born. He does anything I ask him too....almost always without complaining.

I wanted to do something for him to say thanks. On Friday night, I took him to his favorite restaurant....The Pasta Shop....for dinner & then we headed to The Planet Hollywood Hotel where we had some of the best gelatto ever and saw STOMP OUT LOUD. For those of you who haven't seen it, we definitely recommend it. It was so entertaining and funny. The nice thing about it is locals can get any available seat in the house for $50. So, we were front and center on the 7th row and it was great. Of all the shows we've seen, I've never seen Wes enjoy anything as much as he liked this. We had a great night out with just the two of us.

"You're tall so you won't get very big"

YEAH RIGHT.

For a while, that was true. I felt like maybe I did have some extra room in there for him to grow but that is absolutely not the case anymore. I can't believe I'm actually posting a picture of myself to prove it.

The last month has been crazy. I swear he has grown like a weed & it feels like my entire body is swollen & i just feel HUGE. I'm also reminded of how big I am by at least 1-2 strangers a day.

- "ooohhh, you must be due soon"

- "mam...will you fit in a booth or do you prefer a table?"

- "you are going to pop!"

- "are you having twins?"

Just a few of the lines I heard this week. You just have to laugh because it's true!

Enjoy this picture because it will be the last one of me for quite a while.

3.....2......

I’m down to 2 weeks until the due date. It was a little scary when I left my doctor’s appointment this week and Dr. Miller said…”I’ll see you next week unless I see you sooner!” That made me realize that this could happen at any time.

I’ve really tried not to complain during this pregnancy because our little guy truly is a miracle and we’re so grateful to have him. With that being said, I’ve learned two things about the 9th month of pregnancy:
1). Lack of sleep begins. While I realize I have no idea the sleep deprivation I am about to experience, I am getting pretty used to getting up 5-6 times a night and not being able to sleep. The 9th month starts the “no sleep” transition.
2). You actually look forward to labor. I am so uncomfortable that I actually look forward to labor. It somehow sounds appealing because it means this little person will be out of me which means I might be able to see my ankles again, actually put on my own socks and walk without waddling.

With that said, I’ve actually really enjoyed being pregnant. It has been a great experience and I’m fascinated daily that my body literally made another person & that he’s just hanging out in there. It really makes you feel close to your baby when you’ve been able to feel him, what seems like constantly, for months. We are excited to see what he looks like & I’m really curious to see how big he is. Griffeth’s have big babies while Marz babies are small.... so we’ll see. It would be nice if he takes after Marz babies when it comes to weight, but I doubt it. Only time will tell, I guess.

And so….the countdown continues…..3…2…

The Nursery

Even though it's not complete yet....I'm fulfilling my promise and posting pictures anyway!

I haven't seen my little sister, Sam, in a long time so we invited her over for dinner tonight & then I roped her in to helping me finish the nursery. She was a great help! She is great at hanging stuff & she also managed to put some vinyl on my wall straight. I'm not very patient with stuff like that so it was great to have her here. She offered to make a few things for me to finish off the nursery so I'll be sure to post about them when they are done. She makes the cutest frames! My mom had to drop a few things off to me so she also hung out for a while to check out the nursery. She has a great eye for stuff too so I was spoiled with all of this help.

Here are some pictures of the nursery. I had a "close up" lens on my camera and was too lazy to switch so it was hard to get a shot of the full room. Once it's done I'll try to get some shots that show the entire room. But for now, here are a few to give you an idea of what we've done. As you can see....there isn't a theme.....just a bunch of stuff I like jammed in to a room! Overall, I like how it's turning out. With a few more finishing touches, it will be completely done!

His bed

One corner of the nursery

A little vinyl & a peg board

Baby Griffeth's walk-in closet

Belly pictures to come this weekend!

Harry Potter & a Wedding

So far, it's been a week of movies.


Last night, Wes wanted to go out and do something with just the two of us. We had dinner at home and then we went to see Harry Potter. It was the first Harry Potter movie I've seen where I haven't read the book. The movie was pretty good ~ we both liked it. It was nice to be able to go out with just us. That doesn't happen as often as it should these days.


We have a girl in our ward who organizes a girls night out every few months and tonight was it. About 20 girls in our ward met at the theatre to see License to Wed. I didn't have any expectations for the movie so I actually kind of liked it. Don't get me wrong, it wasn't anything that special but when I don't expect a great movie, I usually end up liking it alot more. After the movie, we went to Golden Spoon for some yummy frozen yogurt. Wes & I are totally addicted to Golden Spoon! I called him from there to see if he wanted anything, and he had already had some that night. :) While I was at a girls night, Wes spent the evening at home cleaning bathrooms, doing laundry, etc. What a wonderful husband!

Nursery & Belly Photos

I've had many requests.....even threats.....to see the nursery and the belly. :) I promise, both are coming soon. I haven't posted nursery photos yet because it is just a room with some furniture & I figured I'd just wait until it was completely done. This Thursday night is slated for my "finish the nursery night" so expect to see some photos on Friday.....whether it's completely done or not....I promise to post. I will also post a few photos of my extra-large tummy very soon.

Until then, you can continue to enjoy my picture-less posts. :)

Extended Family

My dad's side of the family is just huge. There are 10 brothers and sisters, 7 of which are still living which makes for a lot of cousins which I've always enjoyed. We were lucky enough to have some of them in Vegas this weekend! On Friday night we had a BBQ & swimming at my parent's house. My Aunt Tina & Uncle Gary were there as well as my Aunt Leslie, and her daughter-in-law Andrea and their two adorable little girls, my Aunt Kara & Uncle Allan as well as my immediate family and our Uncle Jerry. My cousin Ryan and my other cousin Jen and her three kids arrived later on Friday night. Needless to say, it was great to see everyone & catch up. It can be hard to keep track of all my cousins since there are so many of us so I always look forward to seeing them.

Tina & her family left on Saturday morning but we got to see the rest of the clan on Saturday night at my aunt Kara's house. We went over there to play some games & enjoy everyone's company. They picked up cheesecake and chocolate cake from The Cheesecake Factory which was delicious! Tina, Gary, Jen & the kids will be back in Vegas the weekend of my due date so hopefully they'll get to meet our little guy!

I consider myself very fortunate to have such a great extended family! I wish we could see them all more often.

On a side note, I realized as I scrolled down my blog today that I've been horrible about taking pictures. I don't have one picture of this weekend either! I'm definitely slacking....

3.......

The countdown to the due date has officially begun ~ we have three weeks to go until August 10th! I can't believe it's already this close. While my countdown goes to my due date, I have in my head that he will come late. Wes was late.....I was late.....a lot of first babies are late. That way, if my due date comes and goes, it won't be quite as big of a dissapointment & if he comes early it will be a nice surprise. If I can avoid being induced I want to. I'd like him to come on his own but only time will tell.

We put the car seat bases in our cars today. Driving around with a car seat definitely makes this whole thing a little more real. In a matter of a few weeks, our little guy will be in there! It's nice to know that we now have all of the necessities ready for his arrival. Hopefully I'll have time to do all of the finishing touches but it's nice knowing that all of the things we truly need are ready for him to come home to.

Board Meeting....or a Baby Shower?

I love my calling in Young Womens ~ especially because I work with the neatest gals. We seriously have the best group of ladies. They make it so I look forward going to all activities & even meetings ~ we really enjoy each other's company.

They really went the extra mile tonight. We had our usual scheduled board meeting but they turned it in to a surprise shower for me and our YW President, Jen who is due in October! I had no idea they were planning anything. They took us to Metro Pizza for dinner where we spent a few hours enjoying each other's company. I'm so lucky to be able to work with such great women. I really enjoy their friendship ~ I consider myself very lucky to be able to serve with them.

a fun week

We did a few fun things this week that I haven't written about.

On Tuesday night, we finally went out with some friends of ours....Nikki & Cody Treese. I grew up with Cody and his family and he and his cute wife Nikki and their beautiful little girl Tessa moved to Vegas last December and we finally went out to dinner! We went to Metro Pizza, one of my favorites, and then back to Cody's parent's house where we sat outside by their amazing pool and chatted for a while. It was great to see them and get to know Nikki better. I look forward to seeing her more often once I'm at home during the day.

On Thursday, I went out to lunch with Julie Tandy...a friend from highschool. We try to get together for lunch regularly but we haven't been in a while. It was great to be able to chat with her & catch up on everything that has been going on. It's a good thing it was a pretty casual day at work because we got there at 11:45 and before we knew it....it was 2:30!

On Friday night, Wes and I wanted to get a few things done around the house so we'd have more free time on Saturday. When we got home from work, neither one of us were very hungry for a "real" dinner so we tried a new icecream parlor for dinner. I've been eyeing it for a few months and I am sad to say that I was pretty disappointed. Don't get me wrong, the icecream was good but I had a higher expectation for a sit-down icecream parlor. I think I'd rather go to Golden Spoon or Baskin Robbins. I was pretty bummed ~ I always love finding a new icecream joint.

On Saturday morning, Wes played his usual round of golf bright and early. I got up pretty early myself and did some stuff around the house before I met my mom at Nordstrom for the pre-sale! I absolutely LOVE the Nordstrom sale so I was happy to meet my mom there last minute. One reason I love Nordstrom is because they carry quite a selection of size 11 shoes. Yes, as many people say, I could water ski without the skis my feet are so big. :) It's really the only place where I have any luck finding shoes that fit. I did pretty well yesterday with 4 new pair! I have to say that while it's hard to believe I'll ever be in "normal" clothes again - I look forward to being able to shop in normal stores again! You can only find so many cute maternity clothes & who wants to invest that much money in something that's so short term. I look forward to going shopping again!

On Saturday evening, we resumed our "movie night" tradition. This started a few years ago with Ali & Tripp and our mutual friends Tara and Scott. Our group has expanded to include Brooke, Brad & Sam. We get together once a month for dinner and a movie. It rotates who is in charge and you host everyone for dinner and then we get to watch one of your favorite movies. Last night was Tara's turn where we had fabulous gourmet hamburgers & we watched "You've Got Mail". It's a night I look forward to every month. Tara and Scott recently got married so we haven't had it in a few months so I'm glad we're back on track.

Tonight we enjoyed dinner with my family at my parent's house. I always like having my family together. It's fun to have the kiddos around ~ Abbie sure brings a fun presence to our household. There's something about having a toddler around that makes everything more fun. Pretty soon we'll have 3 little ones running around! It was probably our last family Sunday dinner for a while since my parent's are remodeling their kitchen and Ali and Tripp will be out of town for a few weekends so it was fun to see everyone.

We have another busy week ahead of us ~ hope you all have a great week!

The Happiest Place on Earth

There are two things that I absolutely love: Disneyland and water slides. Little did I know that they exist in the same place! In our Sunday paper, there was a big article on the Disneyland Hotel and how convenient it is for a vacation with little kids. It's easy to go back to the hotel for naps....or to take a break and go to the pool where they have a few water slides! My siblings love Disneyland, too which makes it really fun to go with them. Seeing this article made me really excited to take our kids there at some point. I think I'll wait until they are a little older before we do an extended vacation and stay at the Disneyland Resort, but it's something to look forward to, right? I love Disneyland ~ it's the happiest place on earth! :)

My Sandwich Addiction

My addiction to sandwiches started about 9 months ago & it has gotten a little more intense as time goes on. It doesn't matter what kind ~ ham, turkey, PB&J, cheese, etc. I love them all and want one for every meal. Even breakfast sometimes. I'm not picky where they come from but my recent favorites have been Panera, Spicy Pickle, Einsteins & good old Subway. My other constant cravings are fruit and icecream, but the sandwich thing has really taken over.

Wes' least favorite food is a sandwich ~ poor guy. :)

Wimbledon

Ever since I can remember, tennis has been a part of my family. If tennis was being played, it was on the TV at our house growing up. When it was a grand slam tournament, we spent hours watching our favorite players. My mom was often found screaming at the players through the TV ~ as if they could hear her.




I forgot to set my alarm this morning to get up in enough time to watch the beginning of the Finals of Wimbledon so I was grateful for my mom's call this morning reminding me of the great match that was on TV between Nadal and Federer. For most of you out there that don't follow tennis, Federer is the #1 player in the world and is extremely difficult to beat, especially on grass. If anyone can beat him, it's Nadal. And he came closer today than anyone ever has. He lost in 5 sets but he played a great match and I'm sure it boosted his confidence that it's only a matter of time before he can beat Federer at Wimbledon. With Federer's win today, he tied the record for winning Wimbledon 5 years in a row. I'm not a huge fan of Federer so I was sad this morning when Nadal couldn't pull it off in the end, but I always enjoy a good tennis match.


A dream of mine is to go all of the Grand Slam Tournaments....I've been to Wimbledon so I have the Austrailan Open, US Open & French Open to go. Here are a few pictures of our time at Wimbledon in 2001. It's such an amazing tennis arena - I loved it.

No More Random Saturday Night Dinners

We swim at my parent's house every Saturday afternoon. Every once in a while, we end up going out to dinner with them. The last time we went out for a random dinner on a Saturday night, we got in a car accident. Luckily we weren't a part of tonight's accident but we sure witnessed a good one.

We were the first car stopped at a red light going East. The cars going North had the green light and a few cars even made it through the intersection before a car coming West at full speed ran her red light and got T-boned, sending her through the intersection, down the street a bit, over the median & she stopped just in time or she would have slammed in to a block wall. Not only was it a red light, but cars had been at a complete standstill and she still went right through it! We pulled over, called 911, and made sure everyone was OK and thankfully, everyone seemed fine. The driver at fault immediately admitted that she was on her cell phone & was not paying attention at all. These accidents scare me to death ~ there are way too many people on the road that aren't paying attention at all. Sooner than later cell phones need to be banned from cars because too many people cause pretty severe accidents.

We were very lucky to have escaped harm in this accident. We all looked at each other and thought...."maybe our luck isn't so good on these random Saturday night dinners." Next time we'll have pizza delivered.

7.4.07

Happy Fourth of July.

I thought a little bit today about this amazing country that we live in, for the freedoms we enjoy, and for the wonderful people and families who sacrifice so much for our country. We truly are blessed to live where we live & enjoy everything we enjoy.

Our 4th of July was pretty low-key this year....we just enjoyed our day off together. Wes played golf this morning (for the first time ever, he beat my dad! This has been a goal of Wes' for over 4 years now!) and we worked around the house a little bit. Our afternoon was spent at my parent's house in the pool. They had to pry me out of the water to eat dinner. I just love being in the pool even if it is 110 outside. It's the only place where I actually feel comfortable & without back pain! We had dinner over there & played some games. We got to experience the many fireworks that were going off on our drive home. They were everywhere!

Hope you all had an enjoyable holiday!